What an amazing way to end my birthday month. (Birthdays are celebrated for a month, right?) THE EX LOTTERY won first place in the New England Readers’ Choice Awards for long contemporary romance. The New England Chapter of the Romance Writers of America (NECRWA) sponsored the competition and announced the winners Saturday morning during the 2015 Let Your Imagination Take Flight awards banquet in Burlington, MA.

I missed the conference. I was attending another meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, that had been scheduled a year earlier. But I kept up with the events on social media. Since I knew my novel was a finalist in the Readers’ Choice awards, I mentioned it to a few of my closest friends at breakfast Saturday morning. At noon, I rushed back to my room to check my email and twitter, but no announcements. I grabbed a sweater too. (I dressed for the Low Country, not the mountains. Who knew April could be cold?)

At our late lunch, my friends asked, “Did you win?” And I admitted that I’d not received an announcement so I thought—probably not. But I was still happy. After all, I was a finalist with authors like RITA winner Nancy Herkness and USA Today Bestseller Sophie Moss. And the NECRWA is the RWA chapter that boasts Kristan Higgins as a member. So being a finalist was almost as wonderful as winning—almost.

Saturday night, I went to the Asheville banquet. My husband and I danced and laughed with all our wonderful friends. A wild turkey even snuck up to see what all the fuss was about when we stepped outside for a moment. And we shared a little bread for all her trouble.

When my husband and I returned to our hotel room, I decided to check my email one last time. And there it was—an email congratulating me for winning. I may or may not have done a small happy dance in my pajamas—and it had nothing to do with the fact that I had finished off three glasses of wine at the dinner-dance. I was just still in dance mode. My husband offered to take me to a local bar for a celebratory drink—to drag our friends out again—but three glasses of wine is two passed my limit. So I posted on social media and pulled up the latest Nora Roberts on my Kindle to celebrate my new career success doing what I love best—reading romance.

Thanks again, readers. It’s wonderful when reviewers and critics praise a book, but to a writer, the most important opinion is that of a reader.

The Ex Lottery will be featured on the Publisher’s Best Book Hour by the Georgia Radio Reading Service (GaRRS) from December 29, 2014 through January 8, 2015. My novel will be read by Matt Robbins over ten one-hour episodes at 10 o’clock each evening.

I was unaware of GaRRS until Robbins contacted me and asked to read my novel on air. What a wonderful organization! GaRRS is a nonprofit, closed circuit, radio station that broadcasts to the visually impaired and to individuals who are too weak to read or unable to hold a book. For more information about this wonderful program, go to www.garrs.net. If you know someone in Georgia who might benefit from this service, the information is on the website

Robbins is just one of over 500 volunteers working for the radio station. He reads and records novels for listeners. Reading is like breathing to me so I’m glad to learn that there is a group offering this service to those in need. According to the radio station’s website, more than 800,000 people in Georgia alone are legally blind or visually disabled. I was more than happy for my novel to be read to this group, but I did have one concern. I explained to Robbins that my novel contained some “racy” scenes—The Ex Lottery is a contemporary romance, after all. He laughed and told me that listeners had requested Fifty Shades of Grey also so my novel’s content shouldn’t be a problem. The reading of The Ex Lottery begins today. I hope the GaRRS listeners enjoy!

The free promo weekend for The Ex Lottery was a hit. Thanks to all the new readers. Hope you enjoy the romance. And the virtual trip to Ireland. Please drop me a review on Amazon if you happen to journey back to order your next book.

I took most of the weekend off to read and walk the Lowcountry beaches with my husband. It was a bit cold and foggy, but the sun came out Sunday afternoon. Yesterday’s walk did make me think of the castle ruins scattered across Ireland. Tory, the main character in the novel, loves castles.

Standing at the edge of the seashore yesterday, I could see another tiny island. No one lives on that island now, but my husband and I could see an abandoned house. The house is slowly falling apart and its feet are made of pilings which are stuck firmly in the sea. The waves pound the house, but it still stands just like all the majestic ruins that are scattered across Ireland. However, this coastal ruin will slowly rot since it is made of wood, not stone. Still just like the old Irish castles, this house was a home and it makes me wonder what stories lurk within its walls. Maybe one day I’ll write a story about that house, but for now I think I prefer the majestic castles of Ireland—preferably ones that aren’t being washed away to sea.

It has been an amazing two days! Readers continue to download THE EX LOTTERY as part of a four-day free Kindle promotion on Amazon. Thank you to all the romance readers who selected my book as their next read. I hope it is the perfect book for your weekend entertainment.

This afternoon, THE EX LOTTERY moved up in the Amazon Bestseller Rankings to place #58 in free books in the Amazon Kindle Store, #8 in Contemporary Romance, and #20 in Contemporary.

Today, I’m joining Donnell Bell at GetLostInAStory.blogspot.com to answer a few questions about my latest novel. Come join the conversation.

And while you’re there, answer a question for me. I’m asking readers this: What man/actor would you like to meet in an Irish bar and how would you convince him to remove his shirt? Can’t wait to hear from you.

In the meantime, here’s a quick peek into The Ex Lottery when Tory steps into a pub in Dublin:

SHANE SPOTTED HER THE INSTANT she stepped into the dark pub. ……

He smiled, a slow upward grin, and rose to claim her before the six men who had swiveled on their bar stools could beat him to it.

“Leanan sidhe,” Shane exhaled under his breath as he approached her.

Tory frowned. “No, it’s Tory.”

Amused, Shane pointed to the back of the bar, careful not to touch her this time. “I remember. My table’s in the corner.”

Tory hesitated, but Shane had already claimed her bag and was walking toward a dark table nestled in the back of the pub. She took in her surroundings, her eyes drawn to the massive, intricately carved bar. The wood was rich and dark, but the back wall was all mirrors. It reflected the endless rows of pure, clear glasses. The glass sparkled, spinning off images of transparent blue fairies flying in and out of a translucent sea. She took one step forward, but stopped when a voice from the right shouted at her.

“Yeo, girlie!” a patron shouted, wobbling on top of the farthest barstool. Her eyes shifted away from the magic to focus on the man with short red curls, freckles, and a neck thicker than her thigh. “Don’t be wasting your time on that sod. He’ll just break your wee little heart. Come have a pint of the Black Stuff with me.”

“Shut your gob, Neil. The girl’s not after finding a lad in his pints,” the bartender stated.

“I’m not after anyone,” Tory piped in, “just a decent meal.”

“Ahhh, B’Jaysis, and American too! Listen to that lovely drawl,” Neil sighed, and the room erupted in mirth and bawdy comments.

The Wonderful World of “What If?” On a daily basis, I see something or hear a portion of a conversation and my mind takes off to the Wonderful World of “What If?” I wrote my latest novel, “The Ex Lottery” after just such a “What-If?” moment. My imaginary world happens to involve lots of love, fairy tales, and happily ever afters.

Best-selling romantic suspense author Donnell Ann Bell honored me with the request to write a short blog for the website Everybody Needs A Little Romance then to stick around and answer your questions. Can’t wait to hear those questions. And you’ll love the website. It’s a romance readers road map to great fiction. When you visit, check out The Romantics, they are all award winning authors who are the primary bloggers on the site. A treasure map to romance.

In June, I was honored by being featured on the cover of the South Carolina magazine Life on the Riverfront. My home in North Augusta borders the Savannah River. The city has created nature trails along the river and through beautiful woodland areas. It’s a wonderful place for combining exercise with creativity.

Are you directionally challenged? I believe the GPS was invented just for me, but I still manage to get lost. Join me on June 1st and tell me about your sense of direction on Everybody Needs A Little Romance.

Everybody Needs A Little Romance is a blog hosted by several romance writers who talk to their readers about their everyday lives. Occasionally, the authors invite a “guest romantic” to participate. I have the honor on June 1st. Hope to see you there.

I’m excited to be a panel member at the 2012 SC Book Festival, May 18-20, at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. The event features over 70 award-winning authors, an array of exhibitors, and fantastic presentations. It should be a wonderful event for both readers and authors.

I plan to attend Pat Conroy’s keynote presentation and visit Cocky’s Reading Express booth. On Sunday at noon, I will be participating on a romance panel along with fellow award-winning romance writers Kieran Kramer and Rae Renzi, as well as moderator Paula Benson. A book signing follows the presentation.

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